"The Hills" to roll on, without Conrad

James Hibberd, Anthony Crupi

3 Min Read

LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Lauren Conrad has had her fill of “The Hills,” but that’s not stopping MTV from extending the hit series’ run with an additional clutch of episodes set to air in the fall.

Celebrity Designer of the Year Lauren Conrad poses at Us Weekly's Hot Hollywood 2008 party in Los Angeles, April 17, 2008. REUTERS/Chris Pizzello

As part of its “upfront” presentations to advertisers, MTV said Tuesday that the docusoap will continue without the 23-year-old designer, building a new story line around newlyweds (and Conrad antagonists) Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag.

“MTV viewers will find out life in Los Angeles only gets more complicated as friendships, relationships and loyalties are tested like never before as ‘The Hills’ returns this fall with more episodes of Season 5,” MTV said.

Specifying that the additional episodes continue the current season, the network has not given the green light to another season per se.

MTV also unveiled its 2009-10 programing roster, prepping nine new shows and returning four series. The network indicated that its development slate will “continue to reflect a directional shift geared toward the millennial generation, with shows that are aspirational, escapist and optimistic.”

In addition to the fashion reality competition series “Stylist,” DJ AM’s new intervention series “Gone Too Far” and animated shows “DJ and the Fro” and “Popzilla,” MTV’s new offerings:

* “The Buried Life”: A new show that follows “four young men on an epic quest to prove that anyone can do anything — everything from kissing Rachel McAdams to getting in the Guinness Book of World Records. But they also made a promise to themselves: for every goal they achieve on their list, they help a stranger do something on theirs.”

* “The Alexa Chung Show,” a one-hour daily live show hosted by the British TV personality and model. The program will feature celebrity guests and musical performances and allow viewers to interact with guests in real time via Twitter.

* “Ultimate Parkour Challenge:” Competition series using “free running,” or parkour, in which athletes race from Point A to Point B over walls, cars, stairs, railings and rooftops.

— “Pranked”: A weekly 30-minute collection of “the very best pranks” pulled off the Internet.

In addition to “The Hills,” MTV also is cooking up new seasons of “America’s Best Dance Crew,” “Run’s House” and “Nitro Circus.”